Life Member. Violin
8/1/1927 – 10/28/2016
Erica Keen was born Erika Kühn in Deutche Krone, Germany, now Walcz, Poland. Her parents were Hilmeyer Kühn of Izbica Kujawska, Poland and Dora Prinz of Preussisch Stargard, Germany, now Stargard, Poland. Erika’s father was the cantor for the local congregation, and also performed many of the responsibilities of a rabbi. The rise of Nazism put severe pressure on the small Jewish community. At school Erika was not allowed to eat lunch with the gentile children. Her home was searched by the police and Hitler youth ridiculed her in public. Fortunately, her Uncle Morris Keen had successfully emigrated to the U.S. earlier and was able to provide visas for Erika’s family to leave Germany. In 1934 they emigrated to the United States, arriving in San Pedro, CA on July 23.
In time Erika Kühn became Erica Keen, and she grew up in mid-central Los Angeles. Economic and family issues made childhood challenging, but Erica learned English quickly and performed well in school, graduating with honors from Fairfax High School in January 1945. Early on Erica was attracted to music and at age ten began studying the violin. At 14 she began violin studies in the class of Julian Brodetsky and soon became a member of the Brodetsky Ensemble, a highly respected chamber string orchestra. While being a talented young woman, Erica always maintained that it was her hard work and years of practice that made it possible for her to become a professional musician.
Erica became a member of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in 1955 and remained with the orchestra until she resigned in 1975. For 10 years during that period she also was a member of the San Francisco Opera orchestra.Through 1981 Erica worked in the Los Angeles music industry and then moved to Encinitas, California, where she lived until moving back to San Francisco in 2009. In Encinitas Erica evolved into a performer of newer and sometimes experimental music. By 1987 she was playing a five-string electric violin exclusively, taking advantage of electronic components to expand the sonic possibilities of her instrument. With her husband, trombonist Miles Anderson, she formed the duo (trom-bown) and toured extensively performing music that they had commissioned or composed themselves. For many years they collaborated with choreographers, actors, writers, and musicians in innovative creative projects. Some of their recorded work can be found at www.trom-bown.com.
Erica was a voracious reader and was inspired to write. She composed a novel, many short stories and an extensive journal. In 1982 Erica published the first guide book on orchestra auditioning, “How to Get an Orchestra Job—and Keep It.”
Volunteering in the community was important to Erica, especially at the public library. The now vibrant Encinitas Library Book Store was begun by Erica in 1982 with a book cart that she loaded with used books to be sold for the benefit of the Friends of the Library.
In 2004 Erica was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease which she fought with great dignity and courage until her death. She is survived by her husband of forty-three years, Miles Anderson, cousins Philip and Ron Prinz, cousin Uri Gorski, and stepdaughters Jana Anderson and Karen Ganley. Grateful thanks go to her extraordinary caregivers Jocelyn Viray and Maricel Enriquez. Donations in Erica’s name may be made to street musicians that you may encounter on your life’s path.
